Twenty WWII veterans to receive Légion d’honneur today

French Ambassador to present 19 British and one Australian veteran with the Légion d’honneur for their role in the liberation of France at a Remembrance Day ceremony at her residence today

11 November 2015

Today, 20 World War II veterans (19 British and one Australian) will be presented with the Légion d’honneur, France’s highest distinction, during a ceremony at the French Ambassador’s Residence in Kensington Palace Gardens, London.

The medals will be presented by Ambassador Sylvie Bermann and Defence Attaché Patrick Chevallereau, in the presence of the Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, the Hon. Alexander Downer AC, and the Minister of State for the Ministry of Defence and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords, the Rt Hon. Earl Howe.

The veterans are being honoured for their role in securing France’s liberation during the Second World War, many of them having taken part in the D-Day Landings in June 1944.

Ambassador Bermann will say: “I feel privileged and incredibly moved to award these veterans with France’s highest distinction, which is our way of thanking them for their tremendous service to our country in the Second World War.

“Just as today we remember the fallen of the First World War, so we shall never forget the courage of those who fought for France’s liberation over 70 years ago. To them, France owes its freedom.”

The ceremony is the latest in a number of medal ceremonies that have taken place since the 70th anniversary of D-Day in June 2014, when President François Hollande pledged to honour all those British veterans who had served in France during the war.

At the ceremony, students from London’s two French secondary schools, the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle and the Lycée International de Londres Winston Churchill, will read out the veterans’ military achievements.